Story Title: Taking the Long RoadAuthor Name: DelwynStory Url: Story LinkContent Rating: Al l AgesStatus: CompletedLength: 61,400 wordsStory Summary: On her way to a ball, where the prince must select his bride, Lyssa Bent meets and falls in love with a young man. She is later startled to learn that not only is this man the prince, but that he wants to marry her.

Gioia’s Rec:
This story was such a surprising treat! I stumbled upon it and had no expectations at all, although once I read the story summary, I thought it might be fairly cliché take on the Cinderella story. That was not at all the case. The story only begins with Lyssa meeting the prince, who falls in love with her almost instantly. That is certainly not the end of the story, especially with two such strong-willed individuals! Lyssa is right to be concerned about how the nobility will accept her, and Will is right to be concerned about her safety. The schemes they concoct to satisfy both concerns keep the story exciting from start to finish. And along the way, both Lyssa and Will experience profound character growth, as they learn to better understand themselves and those they care for. I cannot praise this story highly enough, for Delwyn managed to capture much of the spirit of P&P, while combining that with a fairy tale story that is wholly unique. Fantastic job!

My only critique: This might only matter to canon purists, although I suppose a canon purist probably wouldn’t read enjoy a story as radically AU as this one to begin with. 😉 So this critique is likely moot. However, one particular major decision that Lyssa made (around the time she met Richard; a decision she later called “cowardly”), struck me as probably a bit out of character when compared to canon!Elizabeth Bennet. But I think that opinion is debatable, honestly, and I’m going to have to mull it over further. Regardless, it worked for this version of Elizabeth/Lyssa.